TITLE:
A Brief History of Piano Action Mechanisms
AUTHORS:
Matteo Russo, Jose A. Robles-Linares
KEYWORDS:
History of Mechanism and Machine Science, Piano, Key Action, Keyboard Musical Instruments
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Historical Studies,
Vol.9 No.5,
December
8,
2020
ABSTRACT: The action mechanism of keyboard musical instruments
with strings, such as pianos, transforms the motion of a depressed key into
hammer swing or jack lift, which generates sound by striking the string of the
instrument. The mechanical design of the key action influences many
characteristics of the musical instrument,
such as keyboard responsiveness, heaviness, or lightness, which are
critical playability parameters that can “make or break” an instrument for a
pianist. Furthermore, the color of the sound, as well as its volume, given by
the shape and amplitude of the sound wave respectively, are both influenced by the key action. The importance of these
mechanisms is highlighted by centuries of studies and efforts to improve
them, from the simple rigid lever mechanism of 14th-century
clavichords to the modern key action that can be found in concert grand pianos, with dozens of bodies and compliant elements.
This paper presents a brief history of this evolution with a focus of mechanism
design and development, with an analysis of the most important designs from a
technical perspective. Four milestones can be identified in the history of the
key action mechanism: the clavichord, the harpsichord, the fortepiano, and the
modern piano (including both the grand and upright pianos). In addition, modern electro-mechanical, analogue, and
digital instruments are briefly introduced
to identify the current trends and discuss possible future developments
of key actions.